Page 105 of Wild Omega

The tension inside me snaps loose like a mousetrap wire. I leap up and hug her thin shoulders. Dr Woods pats my arm. “Don’t thank me. Thank yourself. You’ve worked really hard to face your fears”

“Sure. I’m amazing.” Maybe I should get a degree in psychology, because all this is easier to work out than I thought.

Dr Woods grins. “I suppose you want to call your alpha?”

I roll my eyes, more silly than serious. “Um, no, why would I want to call my alpha? Are you fucking kidding? Of course I want to call him.”

Dr Woods laughs with me, and I dig out my new Omega Center-issued phone and dial Rickon.

His silky sweet voice slides right down the connection. “Hey, Biscuit, how’d it go?”

“Um.” I flash a glance at the doctor, who’s trying to look like she’s not listening in but failing miserably. “I gotta stay here another month.” I drop one lid in a slow wink, and she snorts.

“Oh, really?” Rickon’s voice falls. “Well, what’s one more month when we have the rest of our lives together? You can still travel for work, right?”

Shit, he’s so sweet now I feel bad for teasing him. I turn away from Dr Woods and grip the phone with both hands. “Just kidding! The doc’s signing me off.”

Rickon shrieks down the line and his excitement gets my energy firing. Even Ozzie chirps in the background as I tap out a happy dance to bleed off the buzzing sensation inside. “But hey, this is going to be hard work. That script has a lot of lines for me to learn.”

“Don’t worry, Biscuit. I’ve got all that covered. Just pack your bags. When can you leave?”

I cover the phone and turn back to Dr Woods. “When can I go?”

Her shoulders fall with a soft sigh. “Tomorrow.”

A giggle bursts out of me as I repeat the word to Rickon, and he yells again in excitement. Then a thought lights up in my brain. Tomorrow I’ll be playing cards with the omegas after lunch.

I chew on my lip. Could I pull this off? “Rickon, remember that clause in my contract, the one I asked Director Yun for?”

“Oh yeah. What about it?”

I chuckle darkly down the line. “I’m gonna need to cash it in.”

Leaving also means saying goodbye to my omega friends. Bittersweet excitement flickers in my belly as I slide into my seat at the round table. Their cheery greetings wash over me, soothing my headache simply because they’re happy. O-18 and O-20 are inseparable these days. Whoever matches with them will surely get double or nothing. I cover my grin.

“How are we, ladies?” I tilt my head to acknowledge the silent O-20. “And gentleman?”

The silent omega smiles back shyly, long lashes fluttering madly and it’s not even put-on. Cute. They’re all on their own journeys of finding scent matches and families. I’ve been so absorbed in mine I haven’t been paying close attention, but it’s wonderful to see them relaxed and healthy.

O-9 wraps her arm around my shoulders and squeezes. “Why’s it so hard to see you these days?”

I shrug. “Well, my alphas are coming to get me, so I have to be prepared.”

They exchange wary looks, and I grind my teeth to hold back a laugh. Oh, the things they don’t know. I grab the deck of Uno cards and start shuffling. “You know, this reminds me of some dark days. I’m glad we’re free of those.”

Some of the omegas exchange pained glances. Sweet O-18 rests her hand on mine. “We had no idea what you were going through, Red. Could you not say anything?”

I spear her with a hard look. “And you know now because?”

She sucks in her bottom lip and her hand quivers. “The OCB agents have been back doing more interviews before the trials. We heard about all the things that happened at the hospital, I mean, trafficking hub. About the haze and all.” Her nails dig in between my knuckles as she tenses up. “We didn’t know, Red.”

“Hand,” I murmur through gritted teeth, and she gasps and yanks away. I massage away the divots in my skin in silence while they watch me. So, they finally learned about the hell I endured at the House of Bitches. Was it all for nothing that I kept my silence for years?

One thing’s for sure. There’s no fucking privacy.

Soon the cases will go to trial and if the OCB gets their way, the whole world’s going to hear about the omega who got juiced for her haze for ten years. Fuck. They keep asking me for my statement, but I can’t bring myself to relive everything that happened and see it shared with the world.

I paste on a smile. I don’t want to waste my farewell with regrets like this. “It’s okay. I didn’t want you to know. That wasn’t a good place for any of us, but we’re all moving onward and upward now, right?” I deal the cards so we can play. “I don’t want your pity. I just want you all to be happy, hear me? Besides, having you as friends made it bearable.”

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